Sons and Daughters
by MaybeImAmazed
Summary: Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny encounter personal and professional challenges in the new postVoldemort world. Meanwhile, an ancient magic unheard of for centuries gives seven people a second chance at life. HPGW, RWHG, JPLP, RLNTL, MWAW
1. The Students

**A/N:** Hi everyone. Thanks for taking the time to click on my story. I hope you enjoy it. I'm confident that you will if you have a deep love for canon pairings but also have an open mind about what is and isn't possible in the magical world. Reviews are always appreciated. Thanks!

Chapter One: The Students

_Take up your arms, Sons and Daughters_

_We will arise from the bunker…_

_Here all the bombs fade away_

_ -The Decemberists, "Sons and Daugbthers"_

Harry Potter had defeated the Dark Lord Voldemort. He had repaired his broken relationship with Ginny Weasley, the love of his life. He had been accepted to the Auror Training Academy.

All was well.

Or, at least, most was well. Fred Weasley was dead. Remus and Tonks had left Teddy an orphan. Molly and Arthur Weasley, the closest thing Harry had to parents, were distraught over the loss of a child. And Harry was still an orphan, with no living parents or godparents to celebrate his victory over Voldemort with him.

In a moment of uncharacteristic emotional sensitivity, Ronald Weasley sensed that something was up. He and Harry were in their third month at the Auror Academy, and, not for the first time, Harry was not paying attention during dueling practice. Certainly, when Harry Potter was applying himself, he was a force to be reckoned with, so Ron could have been grateful to be getting off easy. However, concern won out.

"Expelliarmus!" Ron shouted, firing a spell so strong that Harry not only lost his wand, but was also thrown to the ground.

"Damn it, Ron!" Harry muttered, examining a scrape along his arm. "That was a bit much, don't you think?"

"Got your attention though, didn't it?" Ron replied, offering a hand to Harry. "What's on your mind?"

"Nothing," Harry said, most unconvincingly.

"It's Fred, isn't it? You need to stop blaming yourself."

"Not just Fred," Harry said, avoiding Ron's eyes. "Remus, too. And Tonks. And Sirius. And my parents. And, hell, even Dumbledore."

It was a mark of how much Ron cared about Harry that he managed not to roll his eyes. Ever since Ginny and Hermione had returned to Hogwarts to finish their seventh years, Harry had become standoffish and taciturn. His grumpiness was most often directed at Ron, his housemate and classmate.

"They knew what they were getting into, mate. You're going to have to accept that eventually."

"But if I had turned myself in sooner-"

"You wouldn't have had the strength to totally accept death, would have died, and then they'd all be dead anyway because Voldemort would be in charge and they'd never obey him. Or something like that." Ron was still a bit confused by the strange series of events that took place during the final battle, and was wary of the emotional trauma further discussion would cause Harry, or the headaches it would cause himself.

"Something like that, maybe," Harry said, more to shut Ron up than because he agreed.

"Oi! Weasley! Potter!" yelled an imposing man from across the room. "Less talk, more action!"

Theseus Scrimgeour was head of the Auror training program and the nephew of the late Minister of Magic. Ron had many colorful names for him that his mother and Hermione would have disapproved of, but Theseus was a good teacher. Harry once pointed out that apart from Lupin and Snape, Theseus was his only defense teacher that had never (really) tried to kill him, and was therefore alright in his book.

"Alright, everyone!" barked Theseus. "That's all for today. You may go."

The auror trainees were scrambling about to gather their stuff and miss the rush at the Ministry's apparition point when Theseus once again called across the room. "Potter! See me."

Harry picked up his bag and trudged to the other side of the practice room. "Yes, sir?" he asked.

The corners of Theseus' mouth twitched. "Don't you, 'sir' me, boy. You know damn well you could knock me down in a duel."

Harry chose not to respond. He realized very early on that his prowess at defense set his teacher on edge.

"Err, anyway," Theseus continued, "is something bothering you?" It appeared that showing this much concern for The-Boy-Who-Lived-(Twice!) was very taxing.

"No," Harry responded.

"Well, you don't seem to be paying much attention. If I didn't know better, I'd say it was arrogance, but…"

"I'm sorry if I was a bit distracted today. Won't happen again," Harry said.

"Fine, fine," said Theseus. "Tomorrow, then, Potter…" he trailed off as he walked out of the practice room.

Harry sighed, shouldered his bag, and made his way to the apparition points in the atrium.

* * *

"I don't understand why you can't come home for your mother's birthday, Hermione!" 

Hermione Granger sighed exasperatedly into the phone. To ease muggle parents' worries after the war, Hogwarts had installed muggle phone booths in the common rooms. Hermione had thought it was a fantastic idea until she had started receiving calls.

"I have school, Dad. I've never been able to leave school during term before, I don't know why you think it would be any different!"

"Because you don't really have to be there, do you? You chose to go back to that place and you can choose to leave it!"

Hermione rubbed her temples. Her parents had not taken losing a year of their lives to memory charms well. They claimed to understand why she had forcibly removed them from England, but bitterness about losing that year and, more importantly, losing their only child to the wizarding world remained.

"Well, Dad, I don't know what to tell you. Give Mum a kiss for me tomorrow and I'll call her after dinner. I promise. But that's the best I can do this year. Maybe next year."

"Fine, Hermione," said her father, his voice full of anger. "Do what you want." She heard the tell-tale click of being hung up on.

She trudged up to the dorm room she was sharing with the other 7th years. Luckily, only Ginny was there.

"Were they mad?" Ginny asked, looking up from her desk as Hermione entered.

"Passive-aggressive as always!" said Hermione. "You're lucky to have parents that understand."

"Wow. Someone envying my family. That's new."

"You know what I mean, Gin." The girls were quiet for a minute. "Are you writing to Harry?"

Ginny blushed. "Why do always assume that that's what I'm doing?"

"Because you've taken to doing your homework at the last minute since your scouting offers have come in. Why else would you be writing anything at 8 pm? Now, if it was half an hour before your next class…"

"I get it, Mum," joked Ginny. She had to admit that Hermione had a point. Ever since the Holyhead Harpies had offered her a reserve position right out of Hogwarts, Ginny had let her work fall by the wayside. She loved the idea of playing professional quidditch, even though part of her wanted to do something worthwhile. After all, her brother and boyfriend were off becoming Aurors and Hermione was being heavily scouted by all sorts of impressive Ministry departments.

"Yeah, well, what's the point, really? All that matters is that I can fly, catch, and score."

Ginny was musing on her value being purely athletic when Hermione snatched the letter from under her quill.

"Hey!" yelled Ginny. "Give it back!"

Being the superior athlete, Ginny could have wrestled the note from Hermione easily, but was a bit to comfortable in her chair to exert real effort.

Hermione laughed at something.

"Don't mock, Herms," said Ginny. "You know that you and Ronnikins write pure saccharine to each other every day."

"I wasn't mocking, Gin. This is really good," Hermione said, carefully reading the letter.

"What's 'really good?'"

"You can write, Gin. You tell stories really well on paper. I was laughing at one of your jokes."

"Yeah, well, fat lot of good that'll do me on the field."

"You could do something with this, you know. If you don't want to do quidditch."

"Of course I want to do quidditch. I'm just in a mood, that's all."

"You're sure?"

"Yes. Now can I have my letter back, please? I'd like to go to the Owlry tonight."

Hermione begrudgingly handed it back.

Later that night, Ginny lay awake thinking about what Hermione had said. She secretly loved to write. She had been an obsessive journal-keeper until the Riddle incident put her off diaries for life. As a child she had made a fake newspaper for stories of the Burrow called the Weasley World Words (the family had always been fond of alliteration). She had never felt more herself than when she was organizing the DA during their insurgence against Snape and the Death Eaters. She would never get that feeling from playing quidditch, as much fun as it was. What if she wasn't just an athletic body after all?

* * *

It was a late night at the Ministry of Magic as two men walked briskly down a series of dark corridors. They were navigating the serpentine corridors almost automatically, trying to deal with the events that transpired in the Love Room as the sun had set. 

"Are they all here, Mr. X?"

"Yes, sir. Seven in all."

"Seven?"

"The most powerful magical number."

"Mr. X, you will need to prepare a press briefing for tomorrow. Something this extraordinary will not go unnoticed."

"Yes, sir."

"Of course, the Department of Mysteries does not normally speak to the press, so you may want to liaise with the Ministry's public relations department."

"Yes, of course."

"Any idea how the seven were chosen, X?"

"They're all connected with Harry Potter, sir."

"Even the Diggory boy?"

"They were schoolmates. Friendly during the Triwizard Tournament."

"This is truly extraordinary. Has anything of the sort happened before?"

"Some preliminary research tells us that when other dark wizards were defeated, 'miracles' happened to reward the vanquisher. There are inconsistencies in records that show the same person dying twice."

"You mean once in war and once when they would logically die of natural causes?"

"Exactly, sir."

"So these seven are a gift to Harry Potter from whom?"

"Impossible to say. But they are definitely for him."

The two men had arrived at a holding cell which contained seven people. Five men, two women. Five grown adults, two men who looked like they were only a few years out of Hogwarts. All looked confused and relieved to see someone.

"My son! Where is my son?" cried the two women in unison.

"We'll get them to you as soon as possible, Mrs. Lupin, Mrs. Potter," said Mr. X. "We're going to alert them to your return in the morning. Messrs Black, Potter, Lupin, Weasley, and Diggory, whom should we alert to your return?"

**A/N:** **More to come, of course. I'll explain how this works in the next chapter, so if you're confused, please stay with me for a little longer before giving up. And please review!**


	2. Reunions

**A/N: **First, I'd like to thank my _wonderful_ reviewers. I appreciated all of your comments so much. I meant to reward you with a longer chapter, but I this one has a nice, natural ending, so we'll have to wait till next time for that. Also, I realized that I forgot to add a disclaimer, so, in regards to this and all other chapters of this story, with very few exceptions, the characters and backstory are JK Rowling's. Now, on with the story.

Chapter Two: Reunions

There was an unspoken agreement between Harry and Ron that they did not talk in the mornings. Number 12, Grimmauld Place was more than big enough for two, so Ron had moved out of the bedroom that he and Harry had shared during the Order years. The boys would drag themselves to the kitchen every morning, where Kreacher would have laid out a hot breakfast and large mugs of coffee.

Friday morning began no differently than usual. The boys ate their breakfast in companionable silence, skimming the Daily Prophet while Kreacher refilled their plates. A tapping at the window dragged them out of their tired stupors. Harry got up and allowed a small, brown owl in. It held its leg out to him, and he removed a scroll of parchment from it.

"What is it?" mumbled Ron.

"Letter from the Ministry," said Harry. "Department of Mysteries wants to see me first thing this morning. They said that they've excused me from training for the day."

"You've got to be kidding me," said Ron, as enraged as he was capable of being at seven in the morning. "I have to face Theseus alone?"

The boys gathered their things and disapparated.

* * *

Fred Weasley was confused. He remembered Percy making a joke in the heat of battle, and then all was blackness. He could not remember anything between the blackness and a cry of "Enervate!"

"Do you have any memory of 'the afterlife,' Mr. Weasley?" asked a thoroughly nondescript man in plain black robes.

"No, I don't," he replied. He remembered dying, and he knew that he was currently alive, but that was all.

"Very well," said the man. "It wouldn't do for you to return to normal life knowing the secrets of death. Death is mysterious for a reason."

"Who are you?"

"I am an unspeakable. I work in the Department of Mysteries."

"When can I see my parents and my brother?"

"Soon, Mr. Weasley. We are just now informing them of your return."

The man left the empty room, as another indescribably plain looking man entered, followed by Nymphadora Tonks and Remus Lupin.

"Tonks, Remus!" George exclaimed. "Do you know what's going on? Did you die and come back too?"

"Yes," said Remus. "Have they told you anything?"

"No, just wiped my memory of the afterlife," said George. "And they said that I can see Mum and Dad and George 'soon,' whatever that means."

"Yes, the unspeakable said that they were going to bring my mother and Teddy in soon," said Tonks. "Wonder why we came back."

"It's Harry." said Sirius as he walked in.

Remus crossed the room to give his old friend a hug. "What makes you say that, Padfoot?"

"Overheard those two Ministry blokes whispering about how 'The Boy Who Lived' was being rewarded for bringing down Voldemort."

"So we won!" said Fred, elated.

"I surmised as much," said Remus. "If we hadn't won, the Ministry would still be controlled by Death Eaters, who would have just killed us all over again."

There was a timid knock at the door as Cedric Diggory entered the room. "Hello," he said, nervously.

"Come in, Cedric," said Fred, walking up to his old schoolmate and clapping him on the back. "Glad to see that you came back too."

"Can't tell why," Cedric said, sheepishly. "I mean, you're all Harry's family. I didn't really know him that well."

"He was really torn up by your death, though," said Sirius. "He always blamed himself for making you take that damn cup with him."

"What did Harry do?" asked Lily as she and James entered the room.

"He did a stand-up thing in tying with Cedric here for the Triwizard Cup," said Remus.

"He won the Triwizard Cup?" said James.

At that moment, however, the two Ministry men entered the room.

"Your family members are here."

* * *

Earlier that morning, Harry Potter had been brought into an empty room in the Department of Mysteries and subsequently left there without explanation. His curiosity was piqued when Arthur and Molly Weasley, closely followed by Andromeda Tonks and his godson, Teddy entered.

"Harry, dear!" said Molly, crossing the room to give him a kiss. "I didn't know you'd be here."

"Do you have any idea what this is about, Harry?" asked Arthur.

"No, I was just going to ask you." He turned his attention to the baby in Andromeda's arms. "Hello, Ted," he said as he scooped up the baby and began making faces at him.

"Hello, all," said George as he too, was deposited without a word. He looked a bit the worse for wear, with large bags under his eyes and a ruffled quality to his hair that rivaled Harry's.

"George?" said Molly and Arthur, obviously confused.

"Hey, the letter told me to come, so I came."

An unspeakable then entered, followed by Mr. and Mrs. Diggory.

"Hello, Amos," said Arthur, shaking the man's hand.

"Arthur," said Amos, "how are you? So sorry to hear about Fred."

Mrs. Weasley sniffled.

"If I could have your attention please, ladies and gentleman," said the unspeakable. "A phenomenon, for lack of a better word has occurred. It is not entirely unheard of, although something of the sort has not been seen for centuries. From what the Department of Mysteries has been able to gather in the short time since its occurrence, when especially dark wizards are conquered, the conqueror is rewarded by what the records call 'fate.'"

All eyes moved to Harry, who instantly became very uncomfortable.

"Err, what kind of a reward are we talking about here?" he asked.

"Well, Mr. Potter, in the past, a lost loved one has been returned to life. In this case, seven have come back."

There was silence in the room as everyone processed this information.

George was the first to speak. "So you're telling me that seven people who Harry loved but were dead are now alive?"

"In short, yes."

"Fred," whispered Mrs. Weasley.

"Yes, ma'am. Your son is now alive again. As are James and Lily Potter, Remus and Nymphadora Tonks, Sirius Black, and Cedric Diggory."

"Cedric?" Mrs. Diggory said, her voice cracking through tears.

Harry hadn't moved. He couldn't think. He couldn't breathe. His parents were alive. His parents who he had never known.

Mr. Weasley put a hand on his shoulder. "Harry?"

"When can I see them?" Harry asked the unspeakable.

"Now, if you wish. You may all follow me."

Shaking, the group stood up and followed him out. They walked through weaving corridors, going deeper and deeper into the Ministry. It was here that Sirius had died, thought Harry. Now he's back. My godson has parents. _I have parents_.

HPHPHP

"GEORGE!" yelled Fred, bolting across the room and jumping on his twin.

"Oi, I can still hear through my remaining ear, thanks," said George, slapping his brother on the back.

"Oh, Freddie," cried Mrs. Weasley, grabbing her son as if she would never let him go.

Meanwhile, Tonks had retrieved her son from her mother's arms and held him close as Remus and Andromeda held her. The Diggorys were having a similar reunion, with many tears and kisses.

Lily, James, and Sirius just stood and looked at Harry, who could do no more than just look back.

"Harry," whispered Sirius, finally breaking and walking over to his godson, wrapping him in a hug. "Harry, I'd like to introduce you to your parents."

Lily walked up to her son and placed a hand on his face, as if she couldn't believe that he physically existed. Harry slowly brought a hand up to hold hers. Tears streamed down her face as they stood there, mother and son.

James put a hand on Harry's shoulder. "You killed Voldemort?"

"Yes," Harry said.

"You faced him?" Lily said, looking scared at the thought.

"Seven times."

"Seven?" said James, in awe.

"Not counting the night…the night you died."

And then the Potters broke down, crying and holding on to each other, like they would never let go.

After some time had passed, Molly Weasley, still with an arm around Fred, approached them, saying, "come on now, let's go home."


	3. Harry's Home

**A/N**: I'd like to start by thanking my wonderful reviewers – you make me come back to write more. I'm sorry if any of you are still confused by what's going on in the story, but _stick with me_! I'm trying to incorporate details gradually. Since the characters haven't fully comprehended what has happened yet, it's only fair for us to wait it out, too.

Chapter Three: Harry's Home

Lily Potter had mixed feelings about returning home. After all, her last, most vivid memories of the cottage in Godric's Hollow were of hearing her husband's death and of her final confrontation with Voldemort. She wasn't sure that she wanted to relive that after having been denied life for so many years.

"I'll take you Side-Along," Harry said, jerking her out of her reverie. "Since you don't know where we're going."

Lily gave him a quizzical look. "Of course I know where home is, Harry."

"Oh, so sorry dear," said Molly, a look of dawning comprehension on her face. "I think we should all go back to our home, the Burrow, at least for now. Your old home is rather the worse for wear."

"Thank you, Molly," said James, putting an arm around his wife. "That's very kind of you."

Harry was a bit confused about his father's stiff behavior toward Molly. As someone who had never been comfortable with strangers, he knew that it was impossible to meet Molly Weasley and not feel instantly at ease. What could posses his notoriously gregarious father to act so distantly he could not imagine.

"Come now, dears," Molly said. Arthur had offered his arm to James, who accepted it a little too graciously, while Lily grasped Harry's arm.

Almost instantaneously, the rather large group appeared in the front yard of the Burrow.

"Home, sweet home!" said Fred, sighing, as George shook an errant garden gnome off his foot.

* * *

Hermione was trying to concentrate on Professor Slughorn's lecture on the importance of proper mathematics in potion making while Ginny drew snitches and quaffles on her parchment when a small first year boy barged unceremoniously into the classroom.

"May we help you, Mr. Audley?" asked Slughorn.

"Professor McGonagall needs to see Ms. Granger and Ms. Weasley in her office immediately!"

Ginny and Hermione looked at each other, both looking supremely confused.

"Do you know what this is about?" Ginny whispered.

Hermione shook her head as she stuffed her things into her bag.

"Good luck, ladies!" Slughorn laughed as they exited.

The girls walked briskly through the halls to the headmistress's office. Ginny shuddered as they passed an obviously new stone wall. In her head, she saw it being blasted apart and collapsing on her laughing brother. Steeling herself, she soldiered on.

"What is the secret?" barked the ugly gargoyle that guarded the head's office.

"The secret is love," Hermione responded, and the gargoyle moved to the side to reveal a moving, winding staircase.

Ginny reached out a hand and grasped the large, phoenix-shaped doorknocker. Something in the phoenix's eyes seemed different to her, or maybe she was just now noticing it. They seemed alive like they had never been before. Light from an unseen source seemed to dance in them, making the phoenix seem alive, winking at her.

"Ginny!" muttered Hermione, and Ginny shook herself and knocked.

The door opened almost immediately. "Ms. Granger! Ms. Weasley!" barked Professor McGonagall, who looked more frazzled than either of her students had ever seen her.

"What is it, Professor?" asked Hermione.

"You are both needed back at the Burrow."

"What's important enough to take us out of school?" asked Ginny, looking extremely concerned.

"Nothing bad, I assure you," said McGonagall with the soft smile that she reserved for those students whom she felt closest to. "Something quite extraordinary in fact. You may use my fireplace, I'll have the house elves send some of your things on for you later this afternoon."

Hermione and Ginny, looking more confused than ever, thanked McGonagall and stepped into the green flames, both shouting, "The Burrow!"

* * *

"It isn't much, but it's home," said Mrs. Weasley as she showed Lily and James inside. 

"It's so good to be back here again!" said Tonks, who had not let baby Teddy leave her arms since their reunion.

"Here as in 'the Burrow,' or here as in 'among the living?'" asked George, earning him a reproachful look from his mother.

"Both," laughed Tonks.

"You may stay as long as you like, my dear," said Molly, giving her a loving pat on the shoulder and kissing Teddy.

Arthur entered the sitting room. "McGonagall says that she'll have the girls back as soon as possible, probably within the hour."

Harry and Ron looked up, grinning, and then quickly looked down.

James raised an eyebrow at his son and looked to Sirius for information, who just shrugged.

An awkward silence had fallen over the group. Tonks was rocking Teddy, while Remus, James, and Sirius sat together in silent unity. Fred and George stared at the Marauders, hoping to catch them in action. Lily sat off to the side, observing her son from a safe distance.

"So, Harry, you were raised by Sirius?" she said, sounding almost as though she dreaded the answer.

The room seemed to freeze even more. "Tea, anyone?" squeaked Molly.

Sirius laughed cynically. "They'll find out eventually, Molly. Best to just get it out and over with."

"Find out _what_ eventually?" asked James. "You said you would take care of our son."

"Wish more than anything that I could have. But, mitigating circumstances…"

"Sirius Black, I KNEW I was crazy to let James talk me into letting you be godfather! What were we thinking! You just left him?!" Lily was standing, shaking and shouting.

Sirius looked angry at the accusation, but in an uncharacteristically calm manner said, "I was arrested for being a spy for Voldemort, for aiding and abetting in your death. You can't raise a kid when you're in Azkaban for life."

"Azkaban," whispered James, his voice full of fearful amazement.

"Then where was Harry?" asked Lily, sounding afraid of the answer.

"There was no one else for him to go to," said Remus. "I couldn't very well raise a child, and based on the circumstances of your sacrifice, Lily, he was best protected when he was surrounded by your own blood. So…"

"Dumbledore didn't!" said Lily, not believing the conclusion that she had jumped to.

"He had to," said Harry. "I argued with him about it so much while he was alive. Now I know that as much as I hated it, I had to go to Aunt Petunia. I wouldn't be alive, otherwise."

Lily sank silently into her seat.

"Mum? We're home!" cried Ginny's voice from the kitchen.

Arthur jumped up and ran to the kitchen to head off his daughter and Hermione.

"Ginny!" cried Fred, bounding after his father.

The crowd waited, silently listening for a reaction.

Ginny's voice carried through. "George! You look good, bro…No need to hug so hard…Wait a minute, why do you have both ears?"

Then came the loudest scream any of them had heard since the war ended.

Harry leapt out of his seat and ran to the kitchen.

"Harry! Harry, he's dead – I'm dreaming, right? How is Fred in here? George, take off the trick ear, this is cruel. Harry, help!"

Harry put an arm around her. "This is real, Ginny. Fred's alive."

"How?" she shouted.

"Don't know. Something to do with me being rewarded by fate or something."

"Why Fred?"

"I'm not the only one, favorite sister of mine," said Fred, also putting an arm around her.

"Hi, Ginny," said a voice from the doorway.

"TONKS!" shrieked Hermione.

"How're my favorite heroines?"

"Who else?" asked Ginny looking at Harry.

She knew, and he could tell.

"Are they…" she began.

"Yes," he answered. "They're in the sitting room. Come on." He led the girls back to where Remus, Sirius, James, and Lily sat. As they took in the sight, Harry said, "Cedric's back as well."

"Hello, girls," said Remus, getting up to hug them, while Sirius waved from his perch on the couch.

"Ginny, I'd like you to meet my parents."

They shook hands.

"This is my girlfriend," he explained.

"WHAT?" yelled Fred from the door. "No way, mate. Sorry. Not again."

"I've already got it covered, brother of mine," said George. "Bill, Charlie, Percy and I had a long talk ("Too long," muttered Harry under his breath so only Ginny could hear) with him when this came out. Even ickle Ronnikins said ok, so we're just watching like hawks for the time being."

"Very nice to meet you, Ginny," said Lily. "I don't mean to be rude, but Harry, the Dursleys."

"Oh, don't worry, dear," said Mrs. Weasley. "He always knew that he could come here during the summers and school breaks."

"The Weasleys have been my family since I started Hogwarts," Harry explained.

"Wouldn't that make dating Ginny incest?" muttered Fred, who was shot a mutinous look by his sister.

"Lovely," said James, with no sincerity in his voice.

* * *

The group continued to get caught up over a large home cooked meal. Bill, Fleur, and Percy soon joined the reunion, and after many delicious courses, the newly alive family members had been told the bare bones of what they'd missed.

Sirius pulled Harry aside. "Is this your home now?" he asked.

"Well, I live at Grimmauld Place with Ron, but it's still home, in a manner of speaking, I guess."

"I think your parents and I will crash at your place, if you don't mind. Don't want to impose on Molly and Arthur any more than we already have."

"It's your place Sirius, and of course that's fine."

After a long conversation in which it was decided that the girls and Ron would stay at the Burrow to give the Potters and Sirius some privacy, they departed.

Lily found it hard to fall asleep. She rolled over to face James and poked him. "You still awake?"

"Hmm? Yeah, sure, love. Whassup?"

"Did you notice how Harry kept calling the Burrow home? How he acted like Molly was his mother?"

"Well, once Sirius was gone, and before he broke out of Azkaban, they were all he had. It's only natural."

"I'm his mother. We're his home," said Lily, sounding dejected.

"Life wasn't fair to any of us, Lils. And I don't like being replaced either. I hated seeing Arthur look at my son like one of his own, and I don't think it's just because he's dating his daughter. But the Weasley's are good people. We're lucky he found them."

"You sound like you're trying to convince yourself, James."

"Maybe I am."

* * *

**A/N:** Harry had to inherit the angst gene from someone, right? Please review!!! 


	4. Truths

**A/N**: Sorry that I've made you wait a bit longer than usual for an update, but I've just gotten back to school, so I have things other than writing for pleasure to do (sigh). I still love my reviewers, but according to my stats there are way more people reading this than reviewing, so leave me one and join in on all this love!!

Now back to JK's motley crew…

Chapter Four: Truths

Hermione's first thought upon waking was, "where am I?" She took in the Quidditch and Weird Sisters posters on the walls, the pink, flowery curtains blowing slightly in the breeze, and the narrow trundle bed on which she was sleeping. Slowly it all came back. Meeting with Professor McGonagall. Seeing Fred, Tonks, Remus, and Sirius alive again. Meeting Harry's parents.

Parents.

"Oh BLOODY HELL," she shouted, smacking herself on the head and jumping out of bed. "No no no no no no no no!" she muttered as she found her school skirt and threw it on.

Ginny groaned and rolled over. "What in the world is going on?" she whined from underneath a pillow.

"I forgot my mum's birthday!" cried Hermione as her head emerged through a green Weasley sweater with her monogram embroidered in the corner. "Where's the nearest pay phone?"

"How would I know?" asked Ginny, who was checking the time. "Hermione, it's 8 in the morning. Mum'll be making breakfast soon. Why don't you go down there, get yourself some coffee and some sanity, and calm the hell down?"

"I'll ask your dad!" Hermione shouted, having obviously ignored Ginny's taunts.

Soon, Hermione was jogging into town in search of the corner of Scott Road and Reynolds Street. She was thinking about how the magical world would do well to mandate physical education as she wheezed down the main street when she saw a red box in the distance; the same booth where Ron had placed an infamous phone call to Harry one summer.

She hastily inserted the change she had found in the bottom of her purse into the slot and punched in her parents' phone number.

"Hello?" said her father's voice.

"Daddy!" she shouted, a little too enthusiastically. "Daddy, I'm so sorry that I forgot to call Mum yesterday, but I have a really really _really_ good reason."

"Does it have to do with how your lot are in the business of taking perfectly lovely, normal children away from their parents forever?"

Hermione shuddered at the phrase "your lot." Her parents were always a little wary of magic, but they had never demonstrated Dursley-esque attitudes like this before.

"Daddy, please don't. There was a war on, I couldn't let you die when I could do something about it."

"Why couldn't you have at least told us? Just because you're a...a…you know, doesn't mean that you're not still the child and we're not still the parents."

"Because I couldn't have looked you in the face and cursed you. It would have felt too wrong."

"But doing it in our sleep was ok then, was it?" he shot back.

Hermione was about to respond when the mechanical operator's voice interrupted her. "You have 30 seconds remaining," it droned.

"Daddy, I'm out of change, but I'll be home in a minute. I want to talk about this in person."

He hung up on her before her time ran out.

* * *

Lily was sitting at the kitchen table in Grimmauld Place, chatting with Kreacher while he made her some eggs. She had intended to make breakfast for everyone, but had found the house elf already hard at work when she entered the kitchen.

"Would you like a cup of tea, Mrs. Potter?" he had said sweetly, with a little bow.

She had accepted, and as she watched him cook he regaled her with tales of her son's heroism and told her that he was an excellent master, even if he wasn't a Black.

"Where's my mother's portrait?" Sirius asked as he walked into the kitchen.

"Master Harry told me I could keep it in my room if I wished, Bad Master Sirius," said Kreacher.

Sirius looked struck. He hadn't realized that Kreacher was still in the house. "You evil little elf, I'll KILL YOU!"

As he lunged for the elf, Harry came racing into the room and pulled his godfather back. "Sirius, no! He was mistreated, he didn't know what he was doing then."

"Oh yes he did!" spat Sirius through his teeth.

"What in the name of Merlin is going on here?" asked Lily, who had been enchanted by the little elf. "Why are you trying to kill such a sweet little thing, Sirius?"

"Because he tried to get Harry killed. Almost succeeded, but I died instead."

There was a rather awkward pause, which Kreacher finally broke. "Master Harry, you and Mister Weasley only keep one of the upstairs bathrooms open. Perhaps I should go ready another?"

"That's an excellent idea, Kreacher," said Harry, looking somewhat relieved. "You go do that. Breakfast looks great."

The elf scampered off, with a scarred look over his shoulder at Sirius.

"So how did a house elf get you killed, Sirius?" asked Lily. "Outsmart you?"

And so Sirius and Harry were forced into telling the rather complicated story of his encounter with Voldemort during his fifth year. They ended up giving her quite a bit of background, ranging from the saga of the Sorcerer's Stone to occlumency lessons with Snape. Lily looked rather pointedly at the inside of her teacup whenever her old friend was mentioned.

She had remained silent for the whole story. Once Sirius and Harry finished, she said, "I just have one question. How was Voldemort able to maintain this connection with you?"

"Isn't it obvious?" asked James, coming into the kitchen from where he had been lurking in the hallway. "Harry was a horcrux.

* * *

Hermione had appeared in a clump of bushes in her backyard, just as she'd intended. She'd never apparated to her childhood home before, but she imagined that the thick branches would give her enough cover to prevent suspicion from the neighbors.

She jogged around the house to the front door, pulling leaves out of her hair as she went. She steadied herself before ringing the doorbell.

Her mother answered. "Your father said you might be over," she said, stepping to the side to allow her daughter in.

"Mummy, I'm so sorry that I couldn't come home for your birthday. And I'm even sorrier that I forgot to call."

"Why is it you were able to get away today?" asked her mother.

"Professor McGonagall sent Ginny and me ho- to the Burrow for the weekend," she said. She had seen the way her mother squeezed her eyes shut when Hermione had referred to someone else's house as her home. "It's good news, Mum, really. There was some sort of magical phenomenon that granted Harry gifts of sorts."

"Oh?" said her mother, with a hint of malice in her voice. "What kind of 'gifts,' Hermione?"

"7 people who died in the wars with Voldemort came back to life, including Harry's parents and Ron and Ginny's brother!"

Her mother looked remarkably unphased at the news that people could actually be brought back from the dead. "But you're not related to any of them. Why were you sent to the Burrow, too? I though Hogwarts had such strict rules about leaving."

Hermione felt cornered. She had just begun muttering, "special circumstances," under her breath when her father entered.

"Hermione. You're here. Your skirt is wrinkled and you have leaves in your hair. What in the hell happened to you?"

"I had to apparate into the bushes so the neighbors wouldn't see me appear out of thin air, Daddy," she said.

Her parents gave each other looks. Hermione could tell that it was going to be a long morning.

She filled them in on the whole story of the return and other things going on in her life. They looked stoic the whole time, unable to be moved by events so inherently connected to a world they could never be a part of. Hermione had just begun to talk about Ron when she said, "speaking of which, I'm sure Mrs. Weasley is worried about me. I left rather, erm, abruptly. I should go back so she doesn't get panicky."

"She's not your mother," said her mother, through pursed lips. "Why would she get panicky over you?"

"She hasn't been able to get out of the panic mode since the war," said Hermione, defensively. "She lost a son, Mum. And almost lost more of them. And she cares about me, and I would never do anything to hurt her."

"You hurt US, Hermione!" yelled her father. "When will you understand that just because the Weasleys are wizards and we're mere, what's the word?"

"Muggles," spat Hermione.

"Whatever. We're still your family. We come first. We had a right to worry about you during that war. You took it away from us. If you had just talked to us about it, we would have taken you into hiding with us. You're just a child, Hermione, and we're responsible for you!"

"I'm not a child, Dad. I was involved in this war before it started. Since I was _eleven_ I've been helping Harry fight Voldemort. I've been an adult in the magical world for over a year. I'm an adult in your world too, now. And I'm making the adult choice to leave now. I'll call you once I'm back at Hogwarts." And she turned on her heel and disappeared from the middle of the living room.

* * *

Lily was having a hard time grasping the fact that her son's childhood had really not been a childhood at all. He had been given adult responsibility as a little first year, and it had only gotten worse as time went on.

She and James were taking a walk together around the little park in the middle of Grimmauld Place. As a child visiting London she had always wanted to live on one of those fancy, rich-people blocks with the private parks in the middle, because the people inside the parks always looked glamorous and deliciously happy. But she was anything but. Dressed in clothes that were obviously 20 years past their date and much in need of a haircut, she was anything but glamorous. Being armed with the knowledge that her son had been so scared by Voldemort, both literally and figuratively, did nothing to improve her mood.

"Lily, sweet," said James tentatively.

"Yes?" she said quietly.

"We can't change what happened to him."

"I know."

"So you shouldn't dwell on it. Just be glad that we're here to help him have a normal adult life."

"I thought you hated that you weren't involved in his life, that it was other people who raised him, and not the people we chose!"

James looked thoughtful. "I did feel that way, but Harry told me something interesting last night."

Lily looked confused. "I couldn't sleep, and I went to get some water, and I ran into Harry in the kitchen. I think I spooked him in that old dressing gown, and he shot a patronus at me."

"What?" Lily said, confused.

"You know how he was telling you about the dementors in his third year? Well, turns out they were, and still are, one of his biggest fears. Moony taught him how to cast a patronus. And guess what, Lils? It's a stag."

She looked speechless.

"We did matter, Lily. Your sacrifice kept him alive even after you were dead. And I was alive in him enough to protect him from evil, too. We were there for him as much as dead parents could possibly be, and I think I'm okay with that now."

Lily looked a little skeptical. "I can't forget about what happened, though. I love Molly Weasley, really I do, but it's hard to accept that she knows my little boy better than I do. That when he cried when Voldemort came back, it was on her shoulder."

"He wouldn't have had tears to cry if it weren't for you. He would have been dead. You're a remarkable mother, Lily."

She didn't feel like arguing, so she didn't respond.

"Come on, love. Let's go have some fun with our son."

* * *

**A/N Pt. II**: That was the longest chapter yet! How about the most review yet, hmmm? 


	5. Inclusion

**A/N:** Sorry for the long wait! I've had a _crazy_ week. Thanks again to all of my lovely reviewers, and, without further ado, the next installment of Sons and Daughters…

Chapter 5: Inclusion

The occupants of Number 12, Grimmauld Place were rather rambunctious for breakfast time. Seated at the large kitchen table, Harry, James, and Sirius were battling it out in a three-way duel between Harry's dish of bacon, James' pan of eggs, and Sirius' plate of toast. Food was flying everywhere as they used their wands to knock levitating dishes into eachother, trying to knock their opponents' food on to the floor. Lily, who had secured a piece of toast before the mayhem began, was sitting off to the side, thoroughly unamused.

"Gotcha!" shouted Sirius as he upset the last piece of bacon on Harry's plate.

Harry was about to retort when he was distracted by a tapping at the kitchen window. "Errol!" he exclaimed as he hurried to let the ancient owl inside.

"Who's it from?" asked Lily.

"This is the Weasley's owl," Harry said, as he scanned the note Errol had brought. "They want us to go over to the Burrow this afternoon and stay for dinner."

"Wonderful!" said James, while Lily gave him a sidelong glance.

"C'mon, Lily," prodded Sirius. "We have to get out of this house. It's a whole lot nicer now and all, but I still feel trapped when I stay in here for too long."

"Please, Mum," pleaded Harry.

Lily froze. Somehow, in all of the mayhem of the past two days, Harry had never actually addressed her as "Mum" before. Her eyes started to well up and she walked over to her son and wrapped him in her arms. "Whatever you want, love. Anything for you."

* * *

"Invite your parents, Hermione," said Molly as she heaped another spoonful of breakfast potatoes on Hermione's plate. 

"I don't think that's a very good idea, Molly," she said as she pushed her food around.

"Show them the miracle that's happened – let them see for themselves. Let them be involved in your life here."

Hermione didn't respond and continued to play with her food. Molly sighed and sat down next to her, taking her hands.

"Hermione, take it from someone who knows, it's difficult to see your children move away from you to do something you don't understand. When Bill told us he was moving to Egypt to hunt for treasure I couldn't believe it. And his job made it hard for him to stay in touch, and we never really knew what his job entailed. And when Charlie moved to Romania to play with dragons of all things, well, let's just say that Arthur and I weren't too pleased. It's difficult for parents when their children aren't close by and are out of contact, especially when they don't really know what they're doing. If it was so hard for me to let Bill and Charlie go off, I cannot imagine the strength it took for your parents to let you go off into some unknown world when you were only eleven."

Hermione looked up. "You're not going to be happy unless I bring them, are you?"

"If I say 'no,' will you invite them?" Molly asked, smiling.

"Yes," sighed Hermione, dejectedly. After all she had been through, Hermione knew that she could never deny Molly Weasley anything.

"Well then, I know that I will not enjoy myself tonight at all if there is one set of parents missing!" Molly declared.

"I guess I'm off, then," said Hermione, levitating her plate into the sink. "When are the Potters and Tonks and Remus and Andromeda and Sirius and everyone coming?"

"I told all of them to be here just after lunch," Molly said as she cleared the rest of the breakfast dishes.

"You're sure you don't want help with those?" Hermione asked, reaching hopefully for the dishtowel.

"Don't stall, go!" laughed Molly, as she swatted her quasi-daughter with the towel.

Hermione chuckled as she spun on the spot before disappearing.

* * *

Ginny had forced down a bacon sandwich very quickly before going upstairs to change. She had met Harry's parents on the day of their return, but it had all been a blur, like something out of a dream. It almost hadn't counted. 

She and Hermione were returning to Hogwarts the next day, and she wouldn't be seeing her family or Harry until Christmas. She had been spending an inordinate amount of time with Fred. George, of course, wouldn't leave his side, but Fred seemed very concerned for his little sister's well-being. Now that they had each other back, it would be impossible for her to leave.

There was a soft knocking at the door. "Can I come in?" said a voice that belonged to the twins, but Ginny could tell by its soft and gentle tone that it was Fred. While George had taken his twin's return as a reason to celebrate life and spent the past few days bouncing around the house full of exuberance, Fred had become very quiet and pensive, as though his very existence could be broken at any moment.

"Yes," said Ginny, holding a sweater up to her body and examining her reflection in the mirror.

"That suits you," said Fred. "I always liked that color on you."

"You don't think that the v-neck is a little too 'come and get it?'"

"If I did would I approve of you wearing it around your boyfriend?"

Ginny wrinkled her nose and sighed, throwing the sweater on the bed and reaching for another.

"Something tells me that it's not Harry you're dressing for though," said Fred.

"Very astute," mumbled Ginny. "Does dying and coming back to life turn you into a mind-reader or something?"

"Nah – I'm just naturally brilliant."

Ginny laughed and pulled a sunshine yellow cardigan that her mother had made for her out of a drawer.

"Perfect," said Fred. "You'll make an excellent impression."

"It won't look like I'm trying too hard? Mum spent so much money on cashmere yarn – this is the nicest sweater in the Weasley household."

"The Potters don't know that," said Fred. "And I don't think that they're going to be thinking too hard about how much the yarn for your sweater cost after spending 17 years six feet under."

* * *

Hermione forced a smile as she tapped the newspaper that she and her parents were holding with her wand, activating the portkey charm. As they went whooshing off across the English countryside, bound for the Burrow, Hermione couldn't help but feel like she wouldn't be able to enjoy a party that she had been looking forward to because she would have to be guiding her parents through the wizarding lifestyle. 

They landed in the front yard, Hermione gracefully on her feet, while her parents were thrown off-balance and ended up on their backsides. As she pulled them up and dusted them off, explaining that it took lots of practice to land correctly, she couldn't help but notice the looks of minor horror that her parents were shooting at the Burrow.

"It's held up my magic," said Hermione. "It's even more stable than our house. Trust me."

The nervous laughter from her mother told her that she must have been asking quite a lot.

Molly Weasley came bounding out the front door, breaking the tension. "Mr. and Mrs. Granger! So lovely to see you again, thrilled you could make it."

"Thank you for hav-" began Mrs. Granger, but she broke off her sentence with a frightened little yelp as four people popped out of nowhere into existence right next to her.

"Sorry," said Harry, nervously. "Didn't mean to scare you, Mrs. Granger. I'm Harry Potter."

"I remember," said Mrs. Granger, who appeared much more interested in the people standing behind Harry. The people that were supposed to be dead, but somehow were magically alive.

After much effort on the part of Molly, Hermione, and Harry, the whole crowd was ushered into the backyard, where Molly had set out lemonade and cookies.

The crowd had been munching and mingling for a few minutes when they heard the tell-tale pops of two more apparators. Bill and Fleur appeared out of nowhere, Fleur looking very green and Billing looking very concerned. Fleur opened her mouth to say hello, but then caught herself and ran to the nearby bushes.

Bill smiled nervously at his family while Fleur was busy being sick. Ginny had pulled her sister-in-law's hair from her face and looked supremely confused.

"Is everything alright, Fleur, dear?" asked Molly, with all too hopeful concern.

Fleur smiled sheepishly. "Everything ees fantastique, Molly," she said as Bill put his arm around her. "Een fact, we are going to have a baby!"

The entire Weasley clan, plus Harry, Hermione, Lupin, and Tonks swarmed the happy parents and grandparents-to-be with congratulations and hugs and tears of joy.

The Grangers and the Potters were left in the dust.


End file.
